Fall of the Cards
by Ranguvar27
Summary: Sequel to 'Let's Make A Deal'. Starts with the end of The Outsider and continues from there. Belle has lost her memories, and Althea is tasked with trying to make her remember her and Rumplestiltskin. But with Rumple gone to New York to find his son, a stranger from outside questioning everything, and Hook, Althea finds herself stretched to the breaking point. Rum/OC/Belle.
1. Of Outsiders and Oblivion

Fall of the Cards

Chapter One: Of Outsiders and Oblivion

Althea had been sleeping, enjoying a rather nice dream involving her, Belle, and Rumple in a hot tub when her cell phone went off in her ear. She cursed modern technology, then flipped the phone open and pressed the 'Talk' button. "Mmmf?"

"Althea?" Rumple sounded as if he were choking back tears. "Althea, Belle...she...she.."

Althea sat up, rubbing the sleepiness out of her eyes. "She what, Rumple? What happened?"

Rumplestiltskin struggled to keep his voice from breaking. "She's been shot."

Althea came fully awake, gripping the phone so tight her knuckles paled. "What? When? Where?"

"A few moments ago, by...an old enemy of mine. But that's not the worst part."

"What's worse than being shot?"

Rumple gulped. "She fell over the line."

Althea went numb. Belle, their lovely, wonderful Belle, had lost her memories. "She...she didn't have a Storybrooke identity, did she?"

"No. She..was locked in that asylum. She's got nothing, and I don't know if I'll be able to make her remember."

Althea ran her hand down her face. "Where are you?"

"Storybrooke General."

"I'll be there in five minutes." Before Rumple could protest, she hung up. She dressed quickly, then summoned her staff and teleported to the hospital. She was able to find Belle's room without too much trouble. Rumple was standing a few feet away from the bed, a shawl draped over his shoulders. He gripped his cane tight as he stared down at a very confused and scared Belle. Althea moved to stand beside him. "How bad is it?"

"Belle's lost her memories, Althea. It's pretty damn bad."

Belle's eyes were darting back and forth like a trapped animals. Finally, they came to rest on Althea. "Who are you?"

Althea smiled at her, though her heart was breaking. "My name is Althea."

Belle stared at her. "Oh. Well, who is Belle?"

Rumple gripped his cane. "You are! Belle, please you have to remember, you have to..." Althea placed her hand over his, shaking her head 'No.'

"I'm sure it will come back to you in time, Belle."

Belle turned away. "But I don't remember anything!"

Rumple hissed in a breath. "I should never have let you come with me. I should have crossed the line on my own!"

Althea blinked as his words registered. "Wait...you crossed the Line? How the hell did you keep your memories?!"

He stroked the shawl. "I coated this in a potion. When worn, it helps me keep my memories. It was Bae's," he added at her puzzled look. "It's a talisman, so I'll be able to know Baelfire when I see him."

"Oh. So, who shot her?"

Rumple's face darkened. "Killian Jones, better known as.."

"Captain Hook." Althea interjected. She knew of the pirate through the stories Rumple had told her. Unlike with Belle, he had never hidden his past from her, and she had never asked him to. "What happened to him?"

"A car hit him."

Althea grinned. "So who was leaving town? Wait, I know. Mr. Clark. He's already lost his memories, so it wouldn't matter. Or maybe it was Regina! That would be even better! Or maybe.."

"Althea, he was hit by someone coming into town."

Althea's jaw dropped. "But...people don't come into town."

Rumple chuckled bitterly. "Looks like they do now."


	2. Of Pirates and Power Outages

Chapter Two: Of Pirates and Power Outages

Anyone that wanted to find the room where Killian Jones, aka Captain Hook, was being treated needed only to follow the exploding light bulbs. Althea was marching through the hospital, staff left on the waiting room floor and her fury rising with each step. Rumplestiltskin had tried to stop her and gotten blasted out of the Emergency Room doors for his trouble. He had wisely backed off, knowing that when Althea was in a rage, things could get explosive. Literally. He surmised that the only reason she hadn't blown up the hospital was that Belle was still inside.

Emma had been talking to Hook when the lights in his room exploded, showering them both with glass and plunging the room into darkness. "What the Hell? Hook, if you and Cora planned this, I swear to god..."

The pirate interrupted her, sounding genuinely confused. "It's not me, love. Don't you sense the magic behind this? The rage? Mark my words, this has to to with the Crocodile."

Before Emma could reply, she heard the sound of two voices. She recognized them as Dr. Whale and Althea Harris, Mr. Gold's...well, she wasn't exactly sure what their relationship was. Whale sounded quite angry, but Althea sounded murderous.

"What the hell are you thinking, Althea?! Do you have any idea the sort of damage you have caused? The lives you have endangered?!"

"Oh, that's rich! Dr. Fucking Frankenstein lecturing **me** about the sanctity of life! Get the fuck out of my way, I have a pirate to kill!"

"As long as he is in this hospital, he is my patient! And you are not to touch him, do you understand me?"

Emma crept closer to the door, eyes straining in the gloom. Althea was standing a few feet down the hall, her body shaking. Emma blinked, rubbed her eyes, then blinked again. It had to be her imagination, she thought. There was no way that Althea could be on fire. She looked closer, realizing that the woman held a gigantic ball of fire in her hands. Whale was standing in front of her. "I don't have to touch him to kill him, Victor! Now, get out of my way, or I swear by the gods I will conjure up Elizabeth's ghost and force you to relive her death for Eternity!"

Even in the darkness, Emma could see Whale's face contort in rage and guilt. "You wouldn't dare..." he whispered. Althea narrowed her eyes at him.

"I will, unless you move!"

Whale shuddered violently, but stood his ground, and Emma decided she had better interfere before someone got seriously hurt. "Uh, hey... Althea, right?" She jumped as the woman spun around, glaring at her. Were...no, her eyes weren't red. Trick of the light. "Althea, why don't you..umm..put away the fire, and we can talk. OK?" She spoke calmly, recognizing the need to be careful.

Althea snarled, knowing that she wouldn't be able to lay a finger on Emma. That damned True Love. She drew her magic back into herself. "What's there to talk about? Hook hurt our Belle. He should die."

Emma sighed. "Look, I understand you being mad. Belle was your friend, after..." she trailed off as Althea's choice of words sunk in. **Our** Belle. Not 'my friend', not 'Rumplestiltskin's true love'. Emma shook her head in slight surprise. "Althea, are you and Belle...together?"

Althea nodded. "I believe the term is a polyamorous relationship." She allowed herself a genuine smile at Emma's gobsmacked expression. "I wouldn't think you'd be surprised, considering you're from the outside world."

Emma quickly recovered. "Oh, no! It's cool, trust me. I just...didn't expect Belle to be the type to...y'know, swing both ways."

"Neither did Rum and I, honestly. It was Belle that suggested sharing him, to tell the truth. At first, I figured she meant he could see one of us at a time."

"And you were okay with that?"

Althea laughed. "Rumplestiltskin and I have always had a very...complex relationship. We're not in true love, and never have been. But he's never mistreated me, in either this world or the Enchanted Forest, and in our own way, we do care a great deal for each other. Plus the sex is absolutely mind blowing."

Emma tried not to think about Gold having sex with anyone, let alone two women at the same time. "So, who..umm..." she couldn't quite finish her sentence.

"Belle, again. She came to the house one night and told us she, and I quote, 'wanted to try something she had read in a book.' Rum's never been able to refuse her, so he agreed, and the next thing I know, we're having a threesome. That was six months ago." Althea's face twisted. "And now, thanks to that one handed asshole, she doesn't remember anything!"

Emma sighed. "Look, as much as I wish I could just step aside and let you do what you want to him, I can't, even if you blast me out of the way."

"I can't. You're protected by a magic even more powerful than mine. So I guess Hook lives...at least until he..." Althea suddenly gasped for breath, dropping to her knees. Emma started forward, concerned, and Whale blocked her with his arm.

"Don't, Emma. Or you will get caught in the blast."

"What bla..." the hospital shuddered violently, and Emma barely managed to stay on her feet. "What the hell was that? Another earthquake?" She tried not to scream when Gold **appeared** in the hall, two sticks in hand. One was his cane, the other looked like a walking stick carved with some very intricate designs.

"No, dearie, that was my rather foolish lover." Gold knelt down and pressed the walking stick into Althea's hands, speaking in a stern tone. "Next time, don't leave your staff lying about. You could have been hurt."

Althea stuck her tongue out at him, then stood, gripping the staff tightly. "I suppose you want me to turn the power back on?"

"If it's not too much trouble, dearie."

A long, exasperated sigh. "Fine." She snapped her fingers, and Emma blinked against the glare as the lights flared to life. Althea leaned against the wall, breathing slowly and deeply. She smiled over at Emma. "Don't worry, I'm fine."

"So what's the stick for?"

Althea sighed, holding it out at arm's length. "It helps to channel and focus my magic, keeps it harnessed." She turned to Whale. "Victor, I..." He held up a hand.

"I know, and I accept your apology. But you do need to leave, before Regina finds out you've been here. We'll do everything we can for Belle, I promise."

Althea nodded, and Emma watched as Gold lead her away, then turned to Whale.

"Who's Elizabeth?"


	3. Of Promises and Partings

Chapter Three: Of Promises and Partings

"Do you have to go?" Althea lay on her stomach in bed, watching as Rumple packed a bag. He sighed, the shut the bag and spoke without turning around.

"Yes. This could be the only opportunity I have to find Baelfire." He looked in the mirror, frowning at the downcast look on Althea's face. "Dearie, you were all for me leaving a week ago. In fact, you helped pick out my clothes."

Althea sighed. "A week ago Belle still had her memories. A week ago we didn't have an outsider in town. A week ago Hook and Cora weren't here. A lot's changed in a week. You're all I have now, and if something should happen to you, who knows what Regina will do to me. Or Cora. What happens if she finds out about me? I'm not protected by True Love like Emma is. If Cora rips out my heart, she could use me to destroy this town. I'm also not looking forward to Hook trying to get his hook into me."

Rumple walked over to the bed and sat next to her, rubbing her shoulders. "You worry too much, love."

"I'm good at it," she said in a dry voice. She rolled over onto her side so she could look at him without craning her neck. "Look, I'm not asking you to not go find Bae. What I am asking is that you be careful. If, gods forbid, something should go wrong, I'll be the only magic user in town that's somewhat on the side of good."

Rumplestiltskin placed his hand over his heart. "I promise that I will be as careful as I can."

Althea poked him hard in the chest, causing him to wince. "You'd better be. And don't worry about Belle. I'll watch over her. That way, Snow and Charmless get to live another day of sappiness and 'I will always find you' mush."

"I thought you liked the Charmings, dearie."

Althea snorted. "I do, but could they be anymore of a sappy, lovey-dovey couple? The only time they ever fought was when Snow took your potion, and even then Twu Wuv saved them. They've yet to have an honest, all out, knock down, drag out, throw-the-plates-and-furniture-at each other fight. You know, the ones we used to have back home."

"You mean the ones where we destroyed half the Dark Castle and I had to restore it?"

Althea grinned and nodded. "Yes, those. Didn't you set my entire wardrobe on fire once?"

"Only after you turned my favorite boots into ducks. I hate ducks."

"As evidenced by your trying to climb up the wall when you saw them. Who would think the Dark One is scared of ducks!"

Rumple raked his hands through his hair. "If you must know, I was attacked by ducks as a child. I never really got over it. And if you use that information on me, I will turn you into a slug!"

Althea raised her hands in a surrendering gesture. "I won't, I won't." She suddenly sat up and pulled him into a long kiss. "I'll miss you, Imp."

Rumple grinned and pushed her onto the bed, nuzzling her jaw. "My flight doesn't leave for another two hours, Althea. We could..."

She shook her head, trying not to cry. "No. Not without Belle. It...gods, it just doesn't feel right without her here. Just...promise me that you'll be careful. I've lost one person I love, I don't want to lose another."

Rum sighed, knowing she was right. "You love me?"

"In my way, yes. I know we've never really come to an..understanding about what we are to each other, but I guess it could be called love. And gods knows Belle is easy to love."

"Yes, she is," Rumple said sadly. "That's what makes this so hard. We both still love her, and she doesn't remember us. Never thought there would come a time when I would sympathize with Charming."

"Can't you make her remember?"

Rumple shook his head. "I don't know. She smashed the cup."

Althea cursed, raking her hands through her hair in anger. "Fuck. Well, maybe I could try to get her to remember me, and then by extension you. Did you use magic in front of her?" Rumple nodded, and she 'tsked'. "Thought you might have. So, I have to make Belle remember both her lovers without resorting to magic. I also have to make sure Cora doesn't find out about me, figure out what the stranger is up to, and find time in between to run my shop. Boy, this is going to be fun!" She sighed. "You'd better get going, you'll miss your flight."


	4. Of Deceptions and Daggers

Chapter Four: Of Deceptions and Daggers

_A/N: I loved 'Manhattan' and am fully on the Nealfire bandwagon. _

Althea was trying her hardest to keep from crying as she walked quickly out of Belle's room and down the hall. She had gone there hoping that there was some tiny bit of memory left in her, only for Belle to freak out at the announcement that they had been 'more than just friends.' She had demanded that Althea leave her alone, and her lover had retreated, tears falling from her eyes as she begged Belle to try to remember.

"Althea?" Red came over to her, eyes full of sympathy. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Red, she...she doesn't remember me. She doesn't remember any of it. I thought-I hoped that there would be something there, but she's gone. My Belle is gone. Red, what are we going to do?"

Red pulled her into a tight hug. "You are going to go home and get some sleep. You look like you haven't had a decent night since Gold left. Belle will be fine here, and you won't be any good to anyone if you are loopy from lack of sleep."

Althea rubbed her eyes. "Yeah, I suppose you're right. What about that Greg guy? Is he still around?"

Red nodded. "Yeah, and so are Cora and Regina. If I were you, I'd lay low and not...do anything that could help them find you."

"Good..." Althea suddenly fell to her knees, gripping the sides of her head. "Shit...not now..."

"What's wrong? Do you need a doctor?"

Althea waved her hand. "No, I'll be...fine. The...dagger...Belle...map..." She took a long, shuddering breath, then stood, face pale. "Cora and Regina are going to try to find...something that will help them control Rumple. I gotta go, look after Belle!"

She ran out of the hospital, heading straight for the library. Once there, she ran to the historical fiction section and pulled out a thin notebook that had been tucked away on the middle shelf. She took it over to a desk, opened it and spread open the folded sheet of paper that had been tucked inside. "Right, time to start the wild goose chase." Althea knew that if she used her magic to alter the map, Cora or Regina would find out, and she couldn't erase anything without the possibility of Hook noticing.

She tore a piece of paper out of the notebook and set about copying the map, only changing a few details here and there. Then she conjured a small flame and burnt the original map to ashes. 'Now, they can look for the real dagger all they want to.'

Her phone buzzed against her leg, and she glanced at the Caller ID before answering. "Hey Snow, what's going on?" Snow babbled something that Althea couldn't quite catch. "Wait, slow down. Who's related?"

On the other end of the phone, Snow sighed and tried to speak calmly. "I said, Gold and Henry are related. Gold's son is Henry's father."

Althea sucked in a breath. "He found him. Wait-so you're saying that Gold and David could be potential in-laws?"

"Yep. Which would make you and Belle-his stepmothers. Good thing you're not wicked."

Althea gulped at the mention of Belle's name. Luckily, Snow seemed to realize that she had upset her. "Althea, I'm so sorry. I wasn't...I didn't mean to upset you."

"It's OK. I already got my dose of sympathy from Red. It's just-Belle doesn't know me, and I can't go look for Rumple without losing my memories. Storybrooke me was involved with Gold, but it was more of a 'tenant with benefits' deal."

Snow sighed. "Yeah, but wasn't that..."

"Nearly the same as it was back home? No. Our relationship was a hell of a lot more complex than that. We were lovers, but not True Loves, but we both had enormous trust in each other. Back home, I was with him because I chose to be. Here, before, I was with him because he held my business over my head. And when Belle entered the picture, things changed even more." She leaned against a bookshelf. "You can relate, though."

Snow laughed. "Yeah, I can. Listen, if you want to stay over tonight, we'd be more than happy to have you."

Althea stepped outside. "No, I'll be fine on my own. So long as I don't draw attention to myself, I'll be dandy. Bye, Snow." She hung up, then walked over to Granny's. "Red, I need a very large Scotch, and to ask you a question."

Red poured the Scotch. "What's up?"

Althea took a long drink. "How would you have described my cursed self's relation with Gold?"

Red laughed. "Um...masochistic? You both fought tooth and nail whenever you were in public, and you'd show up here with bites and scratch marks all over. I thought you were being abused by him."

Althea giggled. "You never saw the damage I did to him. But did you think we cared for each other?"

"No, I thought you hated each other's guts. But, they say there's nothing quite like hate-sex. But that was the point of the Curse, right? To erase who we were?"

"Yeah."

Red leaned across the counter. "OK, what's really going on?"

"Rumple found his son."

Red blinked. "Oh. I didn't know..."

"Not many did. He found him, and I have a very strong suspicion that he's coming back to Storybrooke with him. I'm just wondering-how will he introduce me?"

Red hmmed. "Yeah, it's going to be weird meeting your boyfriend's kid.."

"No, what will be awkward will be him finding out I use magic. Rumple's told me about...the circumstances that led to them being separated, and I have the feeling Baelfire isn't too fond of magic."

"Maybe if you tell him it's different with you. Gold's magic comes from outside sources, but you were born with it. It's part of who you are."

Althea finished her Scotch., staring at her reflection in the counter top. "I hope so. Things are coming to a head very soon. Whether we like it or not, battle lines are beginning to be drawn. A storm is coming, and nothing will ever be the same."


End file.
